Chapter 526 Three Tickets
Ever the incorrigible pervert, Fane would not have been drawn to a vampish woman like Keira otherwise. Predictably, he was not able to take his eyes off Jennifer from the second he laid eyes on her.
Such was the appeal of Jennifer’s exquisite features and fair complexion that not even the loose-fitting clothing she had on was able to detract from her luscious curves. “Hello, Ms. Wilson. I’m Fane Grayson.”
Fane extended a hand toward Jennifer. Though he appeared to have done so out of politeness, what he really wanted was to get a feel of Jennifer’s hand. Unexpectedly, Jennifer merely smiled and showed no inclination to share a handshake with him.
That entire sequence did not sit well with Keira, who went on to hold down Fane’s paw. “We’re not in the office, and you’re not meeting a client. Surely there’s no need for you to be so formal,” she quipped in good humor.
Fane, too, laughed along in response. “Oh, my bad. Old habits die hard, you know. Have you all placed your orders yet? Shall we have ourselves something to drink?”
When Frank brought them the menu while Fane was speaking, none of them expected that the latter would instruct Frank directly without even reviewing the items that were available. “A set of your signature course meals for each of us, and then pop a bottle of ’75 Latife for me.”
“Will do, Mr. Grayson.”
Inferring from Fane’s displays of generosity which were quite a departure from his usual ways, Keira adjudged that he must have taken a liking to Jennifer.
Unable to contain herself, Keira mused, “You must be really close with your boyfriend, Jennifer. The two of you looked so sweet together holding hands at the door that it gave me goosebumps.”
Hearing that made Fane’s eyes narrow subtly. Although Jennifer was not his girlfriend, hearing about the woman he fancied holding another man’s hand nonetheless offended him.
Blushing coyly, Jennifer merely glanced quietly toward Donald. That look made Donald self-conscious enough to seek to change the subject as he addressed Fane. “What line of work are you in, friend?”
“I run my own business that deals in property.”
“Real estate, huh? I’ve several subsidiaries in my group that also dabble in that. What project are you currently working on? Perhaps we might find ourselves collaborating somewhere down the road. As our company has just started out, so we haven’t really done any projects of note to date.”
What Donald said gave Fane a good idea of where they each stood. As Pollerton is not a big place, I’ve already acquainted myself with all the biggest players in the real estate business here. This chap, Donald Campbell? Never even heard of him before.
That was why Fane felt certain that Donald had to be the owner of a small firm. It is almost too easy to have a company registered these days. Takes no more than spending a few thousand to set up a shell company, so practically anyone could call themself a boss.
“Times are tough in the property market in Pollerton in recent years. I used to be able to net profits in the three to four hundred million range back in the day. Doesn’t work like that anymore now because right now, I can only rake in one or two hundred million annually.”
Though it may seem that Fane was merely lamenting the state of affairs, it was essentially a cover for a bit of humble bragging on his part. Donald merely chuckled and did not attempt to build on that conversation, whereas Jennifer’s brows bunched up in unease.
“Anyway, are you into music, Ms. Wilson? It so happens that I’ve three tickets to Wynter Lowe’s upcoming concert. We could go catch it together if you like.” With that, Fane glanced toward Donald. “But it’s a shame that I only have this many tickets, so I probably won’t be able to ask your boyfriend to come along.”
Fane had always been a straight-shooter, be it in words or deeds. Once he was done bragging about his own wealth, he immediately got around to inviting Jennifer to a concert. Needless to say, he was putting Jennifer in a position where she had to make a choice.
Will you stick with your boyfriend and live out the rest of your days in abject poverty? Or would you instead lead a life of luxury alongside me?
That got Jennifer bursting out in laughter. Under the impression that he had succeeded at impressing her, Fane went on to laugh along. “What does that mean, Ms. Wilson? Are we going to this concert, or what?”
